With the fall out of the global economic crisis likely to have a prolonged impact on business, leading transport and Logistics provider Agility has a long term plan for its future growth.
Asia Pacific CEO Wolfgang Hollermann says the company is financially strong and diversified both in terms of services and geographical locations.
“Agility has responded positively to the economic crisis,” he maintains. “We are expecting strong financial results in 2009, due to prudent cost management and a focus on developing high growth markets.
"We see this as the way forward as well as providing a global network for our customers.
“In terms of countries in Asia we are very excited about India and China where we have a strong presence,” Hollermann enthuses.
“In India we are the leading international player and we have invested in assets and people in order to provide a national logistics network.
“In terms of industry sectors in Asia we are focused on offering logistics services to a number of industries, with particular strength in Hi-Tech, Retail, Chemicals, and Oil and Gas support,” Hollermann says.
“There is also significant growth in project logistics, and we are one of the leading players in Asia.”
With a commercial degree and a diploma in logistics and freight forwarding, Wolfgang Hollermann has a long association with the industry.
He got his start with Hermann Ludwig/Calberson; later working for LEP, GeoLogistics and Agility in Asia. “For 15 years I headed up LEP/GeoLogistics in Asia until PWC Logistics acquired GeoLogistics in 2006,” he relates.
“I also have an academic interest in logistics and I have given introductory courses at university to attract talent to our industry.
Like most providers, Hollerman says Agility’s customers are under pressure to reduce supply chain costs.
“They’re looking for solutions that reduce inventory levels, increase efficiency and improve time to market delivery,” he observes. “Across all manufactured goods industries, logistics provides a strategic competitive advantage.”
“We work closely with customers to understand their needs and design solutions that are often very specific to their requirements, including investing into assets to support them. We will continue to approach our relationships with customers in such a way.”
Given there will always be a drive by end users to cut costs, Hollarmann says Agility’s aim is to be as flexible as possible.
“This including looking at sensible cooperation partners specific to the industry or the customer,” he explains, “and doing our utmost to ensure where possible we develop customer solutions that are specific to the industry, not just the customer, in the areas of physical infrastructure.”
According to Hollermann, there are a number of supply chain technologies that will have an impact in the near future.
“Firstly, ‘Green Logistics’ — carbon monitoring, efficient lighting, solar power, recycling and so on will be of importance,” he predicts. “Secondly, the area of optimisation technology which covers a number of areas, such as Network Optimisation, Transportation & Route Management Systems and Maximising warehouse layout, space and flows within the facility, will be growth areas.
“Network optimisation involves how to save costs by re-configuring the locations of warehouses and crossdocks,” Hollermann explains, “while Transport & route management involves the optimisation of multi-modal transportation solutions in bid to boost efficiencies and reduce transit times given the volatility in fuel surcharges and capacity availability.
“There is talk that carriers are realigning internally on trade routes to optimise their carrier loads which may impact certain lanes,” he says.
“Finally, Road Freight Security Technology, for example GPS, for enhancing road transportation security, given select high incident rates for cargo hijacking, US border security programs and driver monitoring will also see more deployment,” Hollerman adds.
“RFID usage will increase over time as well.” In terms of sustainability Agility’s strategy is based on awareness building and a participatory process for making changes.
“Agility is working with the World Economic Forum to identify best practices in reducing carbon in the supply chain, actively engaging employees on how to reduce the company’s carbon footprint, and working towards helping customers understand the environmental implications of their purchasing decisions,” Hollermann says.
“To give you some examples, over the course of the last year, Agility became the first logistics company to go carbon neutral in New Zealand. We also reduced energy consumption in our largest Middle Eastern operation by 30% - taking over 9,000 tons of carbon out of the air.
“Agility also worked with a leading customer to reduce packaging waste, eliminating 12 million plastic bottles a year from the customer’s supply chain, by switching from bottles to thin plastic envelopes to transport drinks.
"Agility was also one the signatories of the World Economic Forum’s CEO Climate Policy Recommendations to the G8 and G20 leaders.”
Agility’s recent achievements and projects are many. They span an agreement with Chevron Australia for supply base operations and transportation services to support the Gorgon Project to a contract to manage the Lihir Gold Mine Logistics Project based out of the company’s Brisbane office.
“The Gorgon Project is a joint venture between the Australian subsidiaries of Chevron, Exxon Mobil and Shell, to develop the Greater Gorgon gas field located between 130km and 200km off the north-west coast of Western Australia,” Hollermann says.
“The Greater Gorgon gas fields contain resources of about 40 trillion cubic feet of gas, Australia’s largest-known undeveloped gas resource. Contract value is expected to be approx A$250M”.
“The Lihir project involves providing freight management services for Lihir’s Million Ounce Plant Upgrade (MOPU),” Hollerman explains.
“The Lihir Gold Mine, LGL’s principle asset and one of the world’s largest gold reserves, is located in Papua New Guinea.
“The project material logistics, expected to be in excess of 50,000 freight tones, will be managed by Agility Brisbane and sourced from multiple locations around the world, including the United States, United Kingdom, Europe, Asia and Australia.
With an estimated completion date of two years, it is anticipated that upon completion LGL will produce in excess of one million ounces of gold annually at its Lihir Island Operation.
Based in Papua New Guinea’s second largest city, Agility’s office in Lae will assist with MOPU logistics services, including transportation of cargo from Lae to Lihir Island, as part of the existing Agility Project Logistics Brisbane contract.
“Agility managed the original Lihir Gold Mine construction from 1995 to 1997, transporting in excess of 180,000 freight tones,” Hollermann says.
Despite these burgeoning opportunities, Wolfgang Hollermann points to Agility’s participation in a number of relief operations after natural disasters in the Asia Pacific region as his proudest supply chain achievement.
“Having the ability, however small, to provide some help and assistance always makes me proud,” he says. “In recent years we have helped out in Indonesia, Myanmar, and China, to name a few, after natural disasters.”